Born to Kill (1947 film)
| Born To Kill | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Robert Wise |
| Produced by | Herman Schlom |
| Screenplay by | Eve Greene Richard Macaulay |
| Based on | the novel Deadlier than the Male by James Gunn |
| Starring |
Claire Trevor Lawrence Tierney Walter Slezak Phillip Terry Audrey Long |
| Music by | Paul Sawtell |
| Cinematography | Robert De Grasse |
| Edited by | Les Millbrook |
| Distributed by | RKO Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Born to Kill is a 1947 American film noir starring Lawrence Tierney and directed by Robert Wise. It was the first film noir to be directed by Wise, who later directed The Set-Up (1949), The Captive City (1952), and Odds Against Tomorrow (1959). The film also features Claire Trevor, Walter Slezak, and Elisha Cook Jr.
The film was released in the U.K. as Lady of Deceit and in Australia as Deadlier Than the Male.
Helen Brent (Claire Trevor) has just received a Reno divorce in Nevada. That night, she discovers one of her neighbors, Laury Palmer, and Palmer's gentleman caller both murdered in Palmer's home. The killer is Palmer's other boyfriend, Sam Wilde (Lawrence Tierney), an insanely jealous man who won't abide anyone "cutting in" on him.
Helen says nothing to the police; she's leaving town and doesn't want to be impeded. She runs into Sam and is instantly attracted to his self-confidence and brutality, but she is engaged to marry a wealthy boyfriend, Fred (Phillip Terry). Sam wants to call on her in San Francisco. He arrives there and meets Georgia Staples (Audrey Long), Helen's foster sister, also rich. Sam soon shifts his attentions to her, marrying the sister for her money after a whirlwind romance. Neither Helen's engagement nor Sam's marriage is an impediment to their beginning an affair.
Meanwhile, back in Reno, the owner of the boarding house where Helen lived has hired a mercenary, verse-quoting detective, Albert Arnett (Walter Slezak), to find out who killed Laury. The detective follows Sam's friend, Marty (Elisha Cook Jr.), to San Francisco, where he soon begins to make blackmailing overtures to Helen. Marty finds out who hired the detective and attempts to kill her, but Sam thinks he's trying to cut in on his action and kills Marty.
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